Featuring an exclusive interview with Susanne DesRoches, the Deputy Director of Infrastructure and Energy at NYC Mayor's Office of Resiliency, this blog explores the developments in Resiliency, Critical Infrastructure and Microgrids taking place around the city ahead of the NYAE Q1 2019 Stakeholder Series.

Advanced Energy Group’s New York stakeholders convened on November 29 at the Duane Morris office near Times Square to discuss energy challenges related to Mobility and Transportation. HG opened the conversation by stating the goal of the session: work together as a group to prioritize energy challenges and solutions associated with greening New York’s transportation sector.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced a $5 million grant for rebates on electric charges in New York City in September. He said, "By expanding public access to electric vehicle charging stations, this program will make it more affordable for New Yorkers to make the switch to an environmentally friendly electric vehicle…” This is part of a much larger effort led by multiple government agencies as part of Governor Charge NY 2.0.

New York’s Q3 IoT Series was one of the most successful AEG Stakeholder Breakfasts event. With dynamic discussion leaders and a room full of important stakeholders, the discussion around the specific problems for technology development in New York City was exciting and fruitful.

Improvements in technology have consistently moulded the cities we live in; IoT and other related modern technologies are bringing about a similar leap in how they continue to evolve. The opportunity and role it has to play in achieving New York’s Reforming the Energy Vision (REV) plan, as well as OneNYC’s citywide emission reduction goal of 80% by 2050, cannot be ignored.

NYAE hosted its Q2 event keeping with the theme of Smart Buildings and Grid Modernization, on 24th of May 2018. The event brought together discussion leaders and participants to collectively take on the most pressing challenges faced by the urban energy ecosystem in New York, which includes modernizing the grid, retrofitting existing buildings, developing incentives and value propositions for building owners, and recent policy implications.

Set forth by Mayor De Blasio, OneNYC aims to reduce citywide greenhouse gas emissions to 80% below 2005 levels by 2050. Reaching this target relies on a variety of energy efficiency efforts. Currently, 80% of NYC emissions come from buildings. Taking into account the pace of current developments, 90% of existing buildings are expected to remain standing in 2050.

With the recent nor’easter storm leaving over half a million people without power, the Q1 2018 Stakeholder Breakfast on the topic of Resiliency, Critical Infrastructure & Microgrids couldn’t be timelier.

As a coastal city, New York faces multifaceted levels of risks from extreme weather events. Some parts of the city are still recovering from Superstorm Sandy in 2012, which highlighted the massive financial and social cost of these types of disasters, as well as the city’s under-preparedness for such events. With recent hurricanes causing extreme flooding, these critical infrastructure risks apply across the country and the globe.

The US burns about 19 million barrels of oil a day; roughly 70% of those barrels accommodate the transportation system. The consequences—such as environmental degradation and economic volatility, as well as contributing to the negative effects of climate change—pose a massive threat to different aspects of the country’s well-being.

The speed of change taking place in renewable energy generation, storage, and the technologies is closely associated with the internet of things (IoT). In New York, it has provided a space for smaller, yet positively disruptive technologies such as actively-monitored workstations and lighting fixtures to be paired with elevator and ventilation systems to reduce overall building energy consumption.

AEG has relied upon its members to frame future discussions by raising concerns and recommending solutions through one of the most vital tools at AEG’s disposal. Post event surveys are not only the key to unlocking essential resources for stakeholders, but also primary channels for the team to explore potential discussion topics and address specific challenges that may not occur in other cities.

On June 29th, 2017, Advanced Energy Group Fellow Tanner Kenney joined the New York Energy Consumers Council for a tour of the nearly-completed Cornell Tech campus at The Bloomberg Center on Roosevelt Island slated to open in August of 2017. On May 30th, 2017, the university announced its goal to achieve both net-zero and LEED Platinum statuses on the campus.

On Wednesday June 29th, New York Advanced Energy (NYAE) held its Q2 2017 Stakeholder Breakfast at the offices of Duane Morris where Discussion Leaders and attendees examined the topics of smart buildings and the grid modernization of cities.

On March 23rd, New York Advanced Energy was proud to partner with NYU’s Center for Global Affairs and Zpryme to bring NYSERDA Chairman Richard Kauffman to speak with NYAE stakeholder members at the CGA campus in Manhattan’s historic Woolworth Building.

The Q1 2017 New York Advanced Energy Group (NYAE) Stakeholder Breakfast took place on Thursday, March 23rd at the offices of Duane Morris where discussion leaders and attendees examined the topics of microgrids and critical infrastructure in the context of City public policy, infrastructure, the private sector, and beyond.

On December 15, 2016, NYAE held its quarterly stakeholder breakfast, which covered the transportation sector from various perspectives. Phyllis Kessler of Duane Morris aptly put that the transportation sector has overtaken utilities as the number one producer greenhouse gases in the nation, bringing up issues ranging from the need to bulk up the electrical grid for vehicle charging stations to modernized and efficient transportation.

On September 14, 2016, NYAE hosted its quarterly breakfast on Technology, Buildings and Distributed Generation Optimization. Discussion leaders shed light on critical concerns within sectors - from the different mechanisms that ConEdison is employing to push for the integration of distributed resources to data driven approaches for customer acquisition and real time results.